As short as the following filings from Palm yesterday are, they say a lot about the current forecast for the troubled handset maker, which is reportedly seeking a buyer:

Cloudy with a definite chance of talent exodus.

In an 8-K regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Palm (PALM) revealed that software head Michael Abbott will be gone by the end of next week.

This is a big move, as Abbott was in charge of development for software and services and the chief cheerleader for its webOS.

To stop other top execs from racing for the exits, Palm finds that it needs to slather on two-year retention packages, including large cash bonuses and restricted stock units.

The company filed plans to do that for six of its top managers: CFO Douglas Jeffries; SVP of Global Operations Jeffrey Devine; SVP of Product Development Michael Bell; SVP Worldwide Sales Dave Whalen; SVP of Brand Design Jeffrey Zwerner; and SVP of Product Marketing Kate Mitic.

Apparently, other execs were also loaded up, without the need for filings.

In any case, you can see it all below in black and white:

8-K

8-k

Jeffries

jeffries

Devine

devine

Bell

bell

Whalen

whalen

Zwerner

zwerner

Mitic

mitic

In an 8-K filing announcing his appointment last December, Palm stated that Jefferies “is a certified public accountant.” Likewise, the company until this week stated in a bio on its Web site that “Douglas is a CPA.” The company on Tuesday changed the wording of bio following a query on the issue this week from Tech Trader Daily; the new language reads “Douglas was formerly a CPA.”

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